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| SportsThursday, October 18, 2007 1:29 AM CDT |
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Tremont’s Thompson runs into cross country stardom
TREMONT — For a sport to attract a champion like Parker Thompson and hold onto him, a lot has to go right. The thread leading back to the origins of the Tremont High School junior cross country star’s success extends to the baseball field where he didn’t make the cut as a sixth grader. He still wanted to be an athlete so he gave cross country a try and became his team’s top runner. He wasn’t good enough to advance from his sectional, but he decided to stick with it. A crucial moment arrived during seventh grade track when he missed a state meet medal in the 1,600-meter run by one place and 13 hundredths of a second. “That’s when I wanted to run,” said Thompson, who threw himself into the sport, body, heart and especially soul. Three years later, he became just the second sophomore to win a Class A state 1,600, flying to a school record 4 minutes, 20.64 seconds. Entering Saturday’s Class 1A regionals, Thompson is ranked No. 1 in the state by Illinois Prep Top Times. He has beaten the top contenders including 2006 Class A champion Matt Feldhake of Effingham St. Anthony. “He’s got to be considered one of the favorites,” said Coach Mike Lynn, who watched Thompson place 11th in last year’s state cross country meet (second among sophomores) in 15:28 for 3 miles. To be considered the best in school history, Thompson still must pass Brad Kaufmann, who won the 1991 state title in 15:04. “Parker is sure making a push for it,” said Lynn, who believes his star can approach 14:45 if challenged. That challenge could come in Saturday’s 9:45 a.m. Eureka Regional from Fieldcrest’s Brian Peterson, who ran 14:59 on the state meet course last Saturday. Thompson has been 30 seconds faster on most courses this year than he was in 2006. “He’s got a lot of experience under his belt as opposed to last year,” Lynn said. “He certainly has a really good kick.” Compared to other runners, Thompson appears to glide. “He looks effortless,” Lynn said. “If you expend less energy over three miles, that is going to help you.” Thompson also draws strength from his faith. “You can always dig deeper,” he said. “I dig into my well that Christ fills.” Lynn says Thompson’s faith is a big part of everything he does. “I think he knows running is important to him, but him being a servant of the Lord is above that, as it should be,” said Lynn, adding, “He’s just a wonderful individual. As good as he is a runner, he’s a nicer person.” Get area high school sports scores and statistics at Varsity Sports. E-mail this story | Print this story | Search archives | RSS Show comments |  Hide comments | Hide comments on all stories |
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